Strawberries and Cream Popsicles

It's only May and it's already 80 degrees in the Seattle area for the second year in a row. This means it's time to pull out the pool and break out the popsicles! I will be the first to admit that us Seattleites get a bit crazy when the sun shines. There are days where it may only be 55 degrees but if the sun is out, you can bet your bottom dollar the park will be peppered with bikini-clad sun bathers. I am not immune, and, like the rest of my NW peeps, I get an extra skip in my step when the sun is shining. So much so that I found myself making homemade popsicles with my girls before 7 AM one day this week. Who cares that the rest of the world was still asleep? It was going to be sunny!!!!!!  

I am typically not really much of a popsicle girl. My frozen go-to is always, always ice cream and my mantra is usually "Why waste a perfectly good dessert by adding fruit to it?" But kids and popsicles and sunshine have this magnetic, irresistible attraction to one another that cannot be denied. And these popsicles were GOOD. I felt waves of nostalgia, as I sat on the front lawn, eating them with my kiddos. 

The red layer consists of fresh strawberries with sugar and lime juice, so, you know, they are practically a health food. The white yogurt layer is sweet and creamy, speaking to the ice cream lover in me. Combined together, the two layers are reminiscent to those creamsicle cups we used to have as kids, with strawberries replacing the flavors of orange. I realize that the picture above also depicts a layer of blue. But just squint and ignore it please. We were feeling crazy in our early-morning-popsicle-making haze and added blueberries too. Next time I'll just stick with the layers of strawberry and cream as they were by far the superior two of the three. Unless of course it's the 4th of July.

Huuuuuurry! Make this NOW. It's 9 AM and it's going to be 80 degrees today, ya'll! 

Strawberries and Cream Popsicles

1 1/2 cups strawberries, halved and stems removed

4 Tablespoons sugar, divided

4 Tablespoons fresh lime juice

1/2 cup greek plain yogurt

3 Tablespoons heavy cream

Combine strawberries, 2 Tablespoons sugar and 1 1/2 Tablespoons of lime juice in a blender. Pureed until smooth, scraping down sides as needed. Divide puree between 4-6 popsicle molds, filling each halfway and freeze for about 30 minutes, until just firm. 

In a small bowl, stir together yogurt, cream, 2 Tablespoons sugar and 2 Tablespoons lime juice. Remove popsicle molds from freezer and top with yogurt and cream mixture. Insert popsicle sticks and return to freezer until solid, about 6 hours. 

Just before serving, run popsicle molds under warm water for 1 minute until popsicles are released.

Makes 4-6 popsicles